In a brief resignation letter, Matthew Andrews formally resigned effective May 23. Back in April, Andrews was accused of helping Felix Trujillo become the first inmate to escape Denver’s downtown jail.

Andrews reportedly told co-workers that he helped Trujillo escape because he had been threatened. But, in an exclusive interview with CBS4 Investigator Brian Maass, Trujillo told a very different story.

Felix Trujillo (credit: CBS)

The inmate said Andrews expected to be paid $500,000 for engineering the escape, but ended up getting nothing. Trujillo said Andrews hatched the escape plot and provided him with a cell phone in his cell, to arrange payment.

“The final plan was he was going to give me a uniform and walk me down, walk right out the front door.” Trujillo recounted, “He said it takes 60 seconds to get out of the jail.”

On April 7, Trujillo said Deputy Andrews did what he promised, delivering a sheriff’s uniform to Trujillo’s cell, including hat, pants, shoes and a jacket so Trujillo could masquerade as a deputy and walk out of the jail with Andrews.

“I was nervous. My heart’s beating boom, boom, boom. He tells me ‘Get dressed, put the stuff on.’ And I walk out my door and the inmates are looking at me like what the hell is going on? I’m going with the flow, you know.”

Together the inmate and his jailer walked right out the front door, into Andrews’ car before driving to Thornton.

During the drive, the inmate said Andrews suggested the inmate “shoot me in my leg to make this look real.”

“And I’m like, I ain’t shooting no cop. I was like no, we don’t need to do none of that. This guy thinks he’s in a movie,” said Trujillo. “If I shoot a deputy in the leg and escape from jail they’re going to want to kill me.”

Trujillo said he left Andrews’ car and later texted ‘the deal is off’ and smashed the cell phone.

Andrews would eventually return to the city jail where multiple sources say he confessed what he had done to a superior officer.

After three days on the run, Trujillo turned himself into police.

Andrews is due back in court for a preliminary hearing in June. His lawyer declined to comment.